episode X

Gradual like the rise of the morning sun, the consciousness returned. Her eyes slowly opened as she struggled to see through the blurriness. Where …am I …? Her head throbbed painfully.

'You're finally awake.'

At the sound of the voice, Reiko turned, startled. The sudden movement sent another jolt of pain up her neck. She flinched. 'Ugh …'

'Relax. It's just me.' A silhouette loomed into view from the eerie shadows. 'I had to take you somewhere else before you were found by the Konoha team,' Kisame explained. He perched onto a low rock where his Samehada was propped against, his eyes fixed steadily on her.

Reiko struggled to sit up, her head clouded with grogginess. She rubbed her temples and closed her eyes. 'What happened …?' she asked almost inaudibly.

Kisame stared at her mystified expression. 'You don't remember?'

Reiko inhaled sharply, trying to recall her thoughts. She glanced at the mouth of the cave that they were resting in, and saw the dusk had already fallen. Fallen …

Itachi's face flashed into her mind and lingered, instantly triggering fresh tears to her already stinging eyes. The fact that she was now conscious and fully aware of it made it so much harder. It was all so real – the pain that was so excruciating and that could only be felt, and not seen …the pain that was so agonizing it could never be healed …it was all real. 'He's …not coming back, is he …' she whispered heartbrokenly.

' …No, he's not …' Kisame lowered his eyes to the ground in front of him. 'I'm truly sorry, Reiko.'

A stab of agony drove through her heart as she fought back tears. She asked quietly, 'Tobi – no, Madara …and Zetsu – they took him away …?'

He nodded. 'Yeah. You …' He met her eyes. ' …did you – have the chance to see him …before he …?'

Reiko's eyes dimmed as she nodded once, her mind clearing as she vividly remembered Itachi's final words. Before she knew it, despite her greatest efforts to hold herself back, the tears began pouring down her cheeks. She couldn't speak. It was as if the only action that her body knew how to do at that moment, was to cry. The quiet sobs escaped her throat, sounding devastatingly piteous to even her own ears.

Kisame exhaled and approached her, lowering to a crouch next to her. He awkwardly placed a hand on her shoulder, but said nothing, as if simply letting her release her grief.

She brushed the tears away. 'He …sacrificed his life to protect the village that used him as a scapegoat,' she said, her voice strained with sorrow. 'The village …that I entrusted my heart and soul to …' Reiko closed her eyes. 'How can I return to that village …? It will …never be the same again. Nothing will be …' She took a deep, shaky breath and struggled to collect herself together. 'Sasuke …what happened to him?' she asked quietly.

Kisame glanced at her, hesitating. 'He's …still alive.'

Reiko scrutinized the sudden hesitance in his mannerisms, and said, 'What is it?'

He hesitated again. 'This may not be the best time to tell you, but …he has united with Akatsuki.'

She looked at him in shock. 'He …what?'

'After Madara came and took him away, he told Sasuke the truth about Itachi.' Kisame looked at her. 'He refused to believe at first …but Madara eventually convinced him. He made his decision to join Akatsuki to avenge Itachi's death.'

Reiko's eyes widened. 'Are you saying that …he's going against Konoha? After what his brother sacrificed his life for?'

Kisame shook his head, as if to tell her that it was hopeless. 'He's made up his mind. There is no going back.' He looked at her. 'You should return to Konoha, Reiko.'

Reiko closed her eyes. In the sheer darkness, she could feel every ounce of the agony falling upon her. 'I know. …That part of my life …is not over yet.'

'Yeah.' Kisame observed her warily, then paused. 'Actually …there's something else …'

Her eyes flew open, and stared directly at him. 'What …?'

He rummaged through his pocket and drew out something, extending it towards her. 'These are yours now.'

Reiko's eyes fell to his hand that was holding two items that looked painfully familiar. There, lain on the palm of Kisame's hand, were the bracelet identical to hers and Itachi's necklace that had matching design to the bracelet. She stared at them desolately as she slowly picked them up with cold, numb fingers.

'He …told me once that if ever anything happens …that I was to give these to you. He wanted you to keep them,' Kisame told her.

She took the two pieces of final remnants from Itachi and slipped them into her pocket. 'Thank you.'

Kisame watched her, as if deciding whether to say something else or not. He cleared his throat. 'You know …Itachi knows – about you and …that uh …other guy,' he ventured hesitantly.

Reiko's eyes flitted towards him, an expression of pure astonishment crossing her face before being replaced by remorse. She became very quiet. 'I …honestly didn't mean for it to happen. But it did, and …I didn't know what to do …'

Kisame glanced out of the cave, where the darkness had already enveloped the night. 'He didn't want to mention it to you that he knew. But I thought you should know, now that he's already gone. Aside from his brother, you were the only one he ever loved.'

Reiko's eyes were filled with sorrow. 'I know there's no point of me saying this now, but – I truly loved him. He was the one …that I gave my heart, my soul …my everything to.' She paused, lowering her eyes. 'I know what it looks like, but what I have with Tenzou was still too 'new' for me to decide …and I guess that's why I didn't mention it to Itachi. Being with him made me happy, but …I feel like there is nothing else I could give him, and perhaps …that's my worst sin.' She smiled mirthlessly, shaking her head as if disapproving herself. 'I'm really …heartless, aren't I.'

' …In a way, yeah,' Kisame responded truthfully. 'But I guess …Itachi knew that he couldn't always be there for you. And if there was someone else who can fill that role for him …it was enough for him. He never saw it as a betrayal. So …don't feel guilty. This is the life Itachi gave you.'

Despite her greatest efforts, tears stung her eyes, although this time they did not spill onto her cheeks. Reiko turned away. 'This life …' she whispered softly. 'Honestly, Kisame …there is nothing left in this world for me to go on with this life.'

All those surreptitious rendezvous through those years that they were apart …the concealed emotions, hidden confessions …their forbidden relationship …their dreams for the future they had promised each other …their undying faith to each other despite the distance …

They had all slipped through her fingers, like fine sand through a sieve, without the slightest chance for her to grasp and hold on to, not even to the smallest speck of hope.

She had lost it all in a blink of an eye.

Kisame looked at her for a long moment, then slowly rose to his feet. 'Reiko. Whatever you do, it has absolutely nothing to do with me. In reality, we are enemies – and you know it's nothing personal. But I respected Itachi, and that is the only reason why I'm doing this.' He gazed down at her. 'After everything he's risked his life for …are you truly willing to throw it all away?'

Reiko's light gray eyes stared at him unfalteringly, then she lifted herself to her feet. 'No,' she admitted.

Kisame studied her carefully and nodded. 'You know what his wishes are, so …fulfill them. Honor …his death.'

She briefly closed her eyes, slowly nodding once. 'Yeah …'

'That's all I wanted to tell you. You should return to Konoha. I'm certain that they're looking for you, as it has already been two days since you disappeared,' Kisame told her.

'I think at this point, they're already convinced that I have switched sides,' Reiko said regretfully.

'All the more reason for you to go.' Kisame looked at her, an expression of finality settling upon his face. 'Well, this is it …Reiko.'

She glanced at him, with genuine gratitude in her soft gray eyes. 'Thank you …for everything.'

***

Konoha, Fire Country

'It's been three days,' Tsunade said gravely, strands of her light brown hair fluttering around her face in the gentle breeze. She stood looking over the entire Konoha village, basked in the faint rays of the setting evening sun. Senryu Reiko …where are you?

Shizune glanced at her master. 'Tsunade-sama …should we assemble a team to find her?'

Tsunade lowered her eyes, exhaling heavily. 'We have no clue about her whereabouts. According to Kakashi's team and the rest of them, they only managed to trace her presence to the Uchiha hideout, just as they did with Sasuke. But …that was it. They couldn't pick up any further trails.'

'What do you deduce from that?' Shizune asked quietly.

'She might have been captured by Akatsuki.' A silence filled the air as Tsunade mused deeply. 'Reiko …huh …' She recalled Reiko's words, the urgency in her voice, the zealousness in her actions. 'She was …in love with Itachi.'

Shizune's eyes widened in disbelief. 'In love?' she demanded. 'What do you mean?'

Tsunade briefly glanced at her disciple, before turning back to watch the sunset. 'Just as it is. Senryu Reiko and Uchiha Itachi of the Akatsuki organization – they were seeing each other.'

Shizune could not hold back the sheer shock that she felt. 'Reiko …and Itachi? But – how in the world …?' she stuttered.

Tsunade's eyes narrowed slightly. 'Frankly, I'm not completely sure of the whole story myself. This is only what I could gather from the little information she gave me, and a whole lot of speculation on my own.' She paused, her eyes lowered. 'They were on the same genin team – that's how they met. After the violent tragedy that befell the Uchiha clan, Itachi fled the village and presumably, that was when he joined Akatsuki. It was during the time after he left that they started seeing each other in secret. And …unfortunately, that's all I know. I don't know what really happened.'

'I do.'

At the sound of the vaguely familiar voice, both Tsunade and Shizune glanced around curiously. Standing at the entry way to the verandah, clad in the typical ANBU uniform, was Senryu Ayako.

Tsunade looked at her in surprise. 'Ayako?'

Ayako was Reiko's sister, and also an elite member of the Senryu clan like Reiko. If Reiko was a genius in nature manipulation and poison techniques, Ayako's talents were more inclined to tactical and intuitive capabilities, which made her an indispensable leader of the ANBU squad. She was sharp and beautiful, and although they tried to keep it under wraps, Tsunade knew of her relationship with Kakashi. Ayako approached them, casting a sidelong glance at them. 'You …want to know what really happened?'

Tsunade's eyes met hers. 'Please.'

Ayako stepped towards the railing surrounding the balcony. 'You were right; they have been seeing each other for years.'

The stunned expression on Shizune's face did not falter. 'Years …? But …why him? I mean, I know they were childhood friends, but he's a wanted criminal. Reiko would be jeopardizing the trust of the Konoha people by associating with someone like him.'

Ayako lowered her eyes. 'And that was exactly what happened. She has the capabilities that surpass an average ANBU member, yet she was not accepted into ANBU because they were suspected that she still had ties with Itachi and decided that they couldn't trust her.'

Shizune looked perturbed. 'Why then …would she still keep her ties with him?'

Ayako casted a glance at Tsunade, then turned away. 'Because she was the only one he trusted enough to tell about what really happened …on that tragic night.' She closed her eyes, and recounted what Reiko had told her.

***